Customer Reviews

The Man In The Tree

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Gene Anderson is born in Oregon to a carpenter and his wife after WWII. As a child, he discovers the strange ability to reach into alternate universes, thereby enabling him to `copy' things, such as the ever-handy cash. Gene is an outcast at school because of his larger-than-normal size, and ends up on the road by himself at the age of nine after the accidental death of a small-town bully. The bully's father, the local sheriff, chases Gene for revenge for most of the rest of his life.

Gene studies art, writes poetry, and copies enough diamonds to make himself super-rich. After a life in SoHo with an artist, then a career as a giant (he reaches eight and a half feet) in the circuses of America and Europe, the wealthy Gene retires to a private compound in Florida, from which he decides to embark on a short career as the new Messiah, with predictable results.

The story starts strong and interesting, but soon grinds almost to a halt in technical details, goes off on tangents or around in circles. I couldn't help but think of a poorly executed copy of Robert Heinlein's classic STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND. If you are interested in this subject, read Heinlein, it is much more satisfying.

"The Man in the Tree" is the first Damon Knight novel I've read. I wish it had been more tightly written. Much time is spent on a pedestrian, obsessed-cop strand of the story. We wait and wait for our protagonist to discover the extent of his supernatural power and then decide what to do with it. Detours through life-as-a-New-York-artist and life-in-a-traveling-circus are interesting for themselves, but don't ramp up well to the mythic ending.

A book I reserve for the "classics" section on my shelf. It has a strong spiritual content but is never "preachy" and has been thoroughly enjoyed by many of my friends. An ending that can make you doubt and, at the same time, believe in humanity. The book can make you think about the beginnings of Christianity, how religions and sects can take hold and prosper in society, and how societies then react. All in all, very uplifting and one I have re-read dozens of times over the years. Now that I know it is out of print, I am delighted that I have a copy.

A unique and fascinating story. Very absorbing with lots of twists and turns and great characters.

Sorry I am not going into detail about this book, but I can say this. . . I read it long long ago and it has always stuck with me. I remember devouring this book and being so happy that I picked it up just from looking at the cover. So, if you are tempted to read it, then I say do it.

The Man In The Tree
by Damon Knight
Berkley, 1984
ISBN: 0-425-06006-3
Cover Illustration by Carl Lundgren
Science Fiction

Gene Anderson discovers he has a talent unlike any other in the world. As such, his childhood should have been a thing of wonder. Instead, he ends up a killer on the run, grows into an eight-and-half-foot giant and lives a queer and uncertain life. As he matures, Gene becomes a poet, a millionaire and even a circus freak. He's also a prophet. Wherein lies Gene's greatest problem. Is he Christ or is he the Anti-Christ? Not even Gene can answer that question.

I found The Man In The Tree to be a marvelous look at the whole idea of Christ. Knight turns and twists our preconceptions before we even have a hint of what he's up to. The end disturbs.

This novel is my favourite book of all time. In fact, it inspired my own fantasy novel, The Sorcerer's Key. Not ever considered popular and never discussed in his biographies, I consider The Man In The Tree to be classic Damon Knight. He always had something to say, and he wrote with a biting wit that was sometimes humorous, sometimes risque, sometimes wry and, in my opinion, often dark.

Copyright © Clayton Bye, 2009